With or Without You
by Lauren-Ash
Summary: Following the aftermath of Dead Man's Chest. Elizabeth is left to deal with the grief of her decision of leaving Jack behind on the Pearl.


With or Without You

by Ivory-Princess

As she wiped away yet another persistent tear drop, Elizabeth Swan popped the cork to her second bottle of rum. _How despicable… Father would disown me if he saw._ She thought to herself bitterly as she poured herself another glass. _"…turns even the most respectable men into scoundrels…"_ Her words echoed throughout her brain as she brought the 'vile' drink to her lips. Her eyes squeezed shut as she felt the burn of the alcohol rush down her throat. She coughed violently as she felt the sting of tears rush to her eyes once more. She looked around to see if she had woken any of the men, but much to her relief, she remembered that she was alone. All of the men were outside, falling asleep to the sight of stars and swinging their _own_ bottles of rum. Elizabeth arose from her creaky wooden chair and began to examine the Tia Dalma's cabin. Slowly, she reached out for a peculiar looking jar of sand. It was much like the jar from before with the beating heart… only there was not a sound to be heard from this particular jar. Only shiny grains of sand. Elizabeth sighed as she turned to the doorway that lead outside to the beach. She slowly eased her way to the exit, but stopped when she able to peak outside through the cut out window. From this view, she could see Will Turner and the other pirates sound asleep along the shore, as a bonfire slowly began to dim. She felt another set of tears rush to her eyes when she yelled, "Damn!" Why was she acting this way? Why was she so upset? She turned away from the sight of her fiancée and roughly hit the floor. "Oh, god…" She croaked helplessly. "Why did I let you go…?" However, she wasn't referring to her husband-to-be. No…she was referring to _the pirate. _She was thinking of the man that she had given up so that she could save her own life and every one else's. For a moment, Elizabeth shut her eyes and replayed the memory…

_Elizabeth leaned in once more as if she were to kiss him, but pulled away and glared at the pirate before her. "I'm not sorry…" She whispered as she stared into his eyes._

_Captain Jack Sparrow had smiled and looked at the woman before him with a small gleam in his eye. "Pirate…" He had called her. _

"Daydreamin' again, are ye?" Elizabeth's eyes snapped open as she stumbled to her feet to face the man before her.

His beard still had the same curl and his deep black-lined eyes were just as she remembered. He even had on the same bloody pirate's hat as well. Yes, it was so: Captain Jack Sparrow was alive and was standing before her with a familiar smirk upon his lips. "Hello, Elizabeth," He greeted quietly.

"J-Jack…" She stammered as she began to rush towards him.  
"Uh-uh…" Jack objected, as he staggered backward. "I believe you do recall what happened the last time you got more than a hair inch to me, ay?"

"But, Jack…I was…" Elizabeth started shakily. "I was just trying to—"

"I understand, love, I do. But, if it's all the same to you, I'd rather we both keep this prim and proper like. Savvy?" He said with a smirk. As Elizabeth looked down at her feet sheepishly, Jack turned to look at the bottle of rum that was set on the table. A small chuckle escaped his lips as he picked the bottle up. "Even the most respectable, ay, Miss Swan?" He chuckled coolly as he brought the beverage to his mouth.

Elizabeth struggled for what seemed like an eternity before speaking, "How…how did you escape the ship?"

Jack reluctantly parted with the bottle of rum and wiped away at his soaked lips. "Did you really think that a tiny thing like the Kraken would stop Captain Jack Sparrow? Now, Miss Turner, I believe you know better…"

"Swan," Elizabeth quietly corrected. Jack cocked his head slightly as he gazed upon her curiously. "My name is still…Elizabeth _Swan_."

"Oh, right…how quickly I forget, Miss Swan." He said as he brought the bottle up for another hungry swig. He suddenly pulled it away and wiped at his mouth again. "But, I s'pose I should've remembered that considering the position you left me in on the Pearl, ay?" He grinned, but somehow she knew that his tone wasn't good-humored.

"Jack, I had to save the others," Elizabeth said, feeling the blood rush to her cheeks. She no longer felt sadness more than she did frustration. Jack let out a 'pfft' noise as he turned away from her. "You of all people should know when to save yourself, Jack Sparrow!" She nearly yelled as she marched up to him.

"_Captain,_" Jack corrected harshly as he turned around to face her again. He slowly jumped once he realized she was closer than before.

"Oh, please, the deal's off between you and Davy, _Sparrow_," Elizabeth said the gritted teeth.

Jack slowly opened his mouth as if he were going to speak, but shut it instead. "No matter how I dread the thought of it all, you are, in fact, correct, Miss Swan."

This surprised Elizabeth as she took a slow step backward. "I thought there would have been more of a fight there,"

"Well, no worries. Savvy," Jack sighed and grabbed the now-empty bottle of rum. "Damn, any more rum?"

Elizabeth rolled her eyes and she looked around Tia Dalma's cabin once more.

"Right," Jack turned to the exit. "Maybe some of the men will have some left over," As he began to walk to the door, Elizabeth lunged forward.

"No, Jack, wait!" She yelled out. As Jack turned to face her with incredulous eyes, he caught her as she stumbled. "Oh!" Jack slowly held her up.

"Have you gone mad?" He asked as he stared into her eyes.

"For your information…" She started heatedly, but then stopped. "…Yes…" A sudden dizziness began to come over her.

"Thought as much," He realized that he was still holding her waist and then reached for a chair to set her in. "Well, I know William is going to have his hands full when you two _do_ decide to tie the knot." He muttered.

"I beg your pardon, sir," Elizabeth started, beginning to feel the drunkenness wash over her. "But, I am quite the prize!"

"Right, I'm sure you are," Jack agreed, rolling his eyes.

"Hey!" She objected. "I didn't see you making many attempts to pull me off of you before, sir." Jack stared into her eyes longingly.

"Yes, well…" He started as Elizabeth began to lean in, eyes closing. "Things change when you leave a lad to die." Elizabeth's eyes popped open hatefully to stare at his cruel grin.

"You're not even the least bit curious?" She asked, unbelieving.

"You're not even the least bit sober, love…" Jack stated as he turned around once more.

"I was fine before," Elizabeth interjected as she stumbled to stand. "Before you came…"

"Ay, well doesn't that always seem to be the case?" Jack replied darkly, turning to face her.

Elizabeth was finally speechless as she tried to focus on the meaning of his words. "Jack,"

"Remember, love," He held up his finger. "Prim and proper like," His tone tried to be meant as good-hearted, but she could see in his eyes the hint of pain that was there.

Elizabeth stared into his eyes as she felt the sting of tears once more. She turned away from the man as she began to gasp for air. "I love…"

"No, no," Jack interrupted. "None of that," He scoffed loudly. "I've been down that path far too many times, Miss Swan, and it never ends well. Always a slap on me face, to be exact."

"…Will…" Elizabeth finished.

This caught Jack by surprise. "Oh, right…of course you do. Silly of me to think otherwise," He looked off to the side, uneasy.

"But," She breathed, causing him to face her once more. "I have feelings for you too, Jack."

For once, Jack couldn't say anything; there were no words. This caused Elizabeth to take a step towards him. "I don't think it's the rum in me talking, either, but I do."

"Elizabeth…" Jack murmured. They both stared into each other's eyes before Jack finally grabbed her by the neck and pulled her towards his lips. He began to kiss her hungrily and run his hands down the curve of her back. She let out a soft moan as she kissed him back.

"Oh, Jack…" She whispered as she felt his hands trail up and down her, sending a shiver down her spine. She could still taste the rum on his lips as she kissed him over and over again.

Suddenly, she felt the lips against hers go numb and unresponsive. Elizabeth opened her eyes to view the man before her. "Jack?" Jack's eyes had gone wide as he stared at her. "Jack?" She repeated louder.

"JACK!" Elizabeth awoke roughly, causing the half-empty bottle of rum to tumble to the floor. Elizabeth looked around wildly, searching for the man that was there only seconds before. She was alone… It had all been a very vivid dream. Too real. She let out a soft groan as she stood to her feet. Elizabeth walked to the door and opened it, and took one step outside. The dark sky reflected off the water as she gazed over the landscape. Her mind flashed back to the Black Pearl's descent into the dark sea and fought back tears. She suddenly realized that whether or not Jack was there in person, he was _still _there in her thoughts. However, something inside her told her that Jack Sparrow was still alive and she would be awaiting his return. _No…_She thought to herself. _I'll be counting on it._


End file.
